


...

by Mardymoo



Category: Stray Kids
Genre: Angst, Brothers, Dystopia, Experiments, Family, Friendship, Future, Horror, Love, M/M, Science, Suffering, Violence, first attempt, fluff later on, i love stray kids, relationships, slow burner, still writing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-21
Updated: 2018-11-02
Packaged: 2019-07-15 05:19:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16056338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mardymoo/pseuds/Mardymoo
Summary: Woojin wakes up in a strange room with no memory of his life before.Stray kids dystopian au (kinda like hunger games and maze runner without the hunger games and the maze).





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoy this story as it’s my first attempt. Please leave feedback for how I could improve. Thank you

//

The room was small and dark...pitch black, he couldn't even see his hands in front his face. But there was a small blue light attached to the wall in front of him - it was barely emitting any light tho. The walls were made of thick, solid, grey concrete with a small hole near the top of the wall to the right of him, the hole was boarded up with bars and then nailed shut with wooden planks - for extra precaution. So that 'window' was no use for an escape - not that he could reach it anyway as it was way too high up for anyone to reach without a ladder. He couldn't even see a door, he figured that there must be one somewhere but it was probably hidden so that he couldn't escape. "Clever" he huffed under his breath. 

It was cold, the floor felt like a sheet of ice on his feet, he felt as if his toes were small icicles attached to his feet. He longed for some warmth; a blanket, a jumper, a radiator, a fire...a person. Anything to keep the cold from attacking his body. He looked around to see if anything was around to aid him in warming up but nothing could be seen. 

He could hear the faint sound of feet coming from the other side of one the walls. He got up to investigate the sound but was quickly greeted with a sharp pain in his leg causing him to stumble back to the ground, making the pain in his leg increase causing him to curse under his breath. He looked at his leg to see a small scar from his ankle upwards, the scar looked quite recent so it could have only been a few days since the cut happened. His mind suddenly grew curious so he decided to inspect the scar. Taking a closer look he noticed that it was unnaturally straight meaning it was probably caused by someone, maybe the person who put him here, tho he didn't really know who that was...or even where here is. 

This struck panic into him, when thinking back he couldn't remember anything about how he got here, he couldn't even remember how old he was or even who he was. He was extremely confused why he couldn’t remember anything. He was beginning to panic, this whole situation was too much to comprehend. 

A sudden click was heard and the smell of gas filled the room. He felt dizzy, his vision was beginning to go blurry and he felt extremely sick and faint. Luckily for him he was already on the floor so once he passed out he only hit his head against the cold, solid floor. 

 

//

"564, wake up" a loud voice boomed filling the space around them. He opened his eyes to realise that he was in a different room. This room was significantly bigger and had smooth, clean, white walls making it look very neat..almost too neat as the room gave off a very uncomfortable feel that he just couldn't shake. 

"I said wake up" this time the voice sounded much angrier and scarier, he opened his eyes too see a large, veiny hand whacking his face causing a pained moan to escape his mouth. The slap was quick but hard, he could feel the skin on his cheek getting hotter by the second, burning with a dark red. He quickly sat up despite his gut feeling to try and make a run for it (he decided against that since yet again he couldn't see any doors nor windows). He felt a throbbing pain in his head, he assumed that was from the fall when he passed out but from the recent actions of the man in the room, he couldn't be completely sure. 

"Do you remember anything?" the man asked emotionless, almost sounding like a rehearsed speech. His mind still felt foggy, he could barley process what was being said let alone think of answer. He just looked blankly at the man, "maybe they used to much gas" he mumbled under his breath. The man reached for a small device attached to his belt, "we have a problem, 564 is still quite unresponsive. Send Walker in." He said holding up the small device to his face. 

The man had a rugged look about him, he had a scruffy brown stubble and two freckles that rested next to his nose, his eyes were a piercing shade dark brown...almost appearing black, his eyebrows were extremely long and bushy and he had greasy, chestnut brown hair that covered the majority of his forehead. His appearance seemed to contradict the way he spoke and acted. 

He felt a pair of large hands place a hood over his head, after a few seconds he heard what sounded like a door opening quickly followed by the hood being taken off. "He seems dazed" an unfamiliar voice said, he turned around to see a short young women wearing a white lab coat, she had long red hair that covered the majority of her face except her left eye that sparkled a deep emerald. He assumed that this must be ‘Walker’ as it was who appeared after the call. The woman whispered something into the mans ears making him go to the opposite corner of the room and sit on a small white, plastic chair that he hadn’t even noticed before.

“Are you feeling okay?” The woman asked walking over to him, her voice was soothing and she sounded sincere. He just continued to stare blankly, he couldn’t think straight, his head was spinning and he couldn’t concentrate on anything that was being said. The woman gently placed her hand onto his forehead, “too warm” she mumbled underneath her breath. The small woman scurried over to the man, whispering something to him again, this time it resulted in the man pulling something out of his pocket and he handed it to her. 

The woman walked back with the object in her hand. It was reasonably small and rectangular, it fit inside the woman’s closed fist so he couldn’t get a decent look. The woman opened her hand to reveal a small container which opened and had even smaller, transparent cylinder filled with a luminescent yellow liquid. She picked up the cylinder containing the liquid and tilted his head back, pouring the unknown substance into his mouth. 

After a few moments he felt his head finally clear, the fog had disappeared, he let a sigh of relief and finally took in his surroundings. The woman from earlier was no longer there and neither was the man. He was in the small, cold, dark room he was in before. It was still empty except a small, dirty mattress in the corner of the room, he decided that this indicated that he should sleep. He hoisted himself onto the mattress and laid there, looking up at the roof thinking about all that had happened that day - since that’s all he could remember anyway. His body ached all over and he could feel his eyes getting heavier by the second, slowly giving to sleep. He tried fighting against the slumber but it eventually won resulting in him falling fast asleep.

 

//

It's warm, the sun is shining down, its rays gently caressing his face. There were fluffy white clouds scattered across the light blue sheet over him. There's young children laughing, playing in a nearby stream. The water is clear, exposing the natural beauty it held beneath. Fish were darting around peoples feet, the children giggling. The whole scene in front of his eyes was beautiful; the trees, the sky, the sun, the stream, the clouds, the happy faces of people around him. It was just perfect. Tranquil. "Woojin" a woman called signalling him over.

 

//

There was a loud siren sounding, waking him up from his slumber, the small light was flashing light yellow. He still felt tired and his body still ached. His mind was still fried, he was no closer to figuring anything out. Was his name Woojin? Or was that someone else. He had no idea what his dream meant; could it have been just that, a dream? Or could it have possibly been a memory? He was unsure, but either way he had no idea what it meant. He couldn't recognise the place or the people so it was useless. But the name, he did feel a connection to it, he just assumed it was his - not that there was anyone around to ask his name. 

After a few minuets the blaring siren stopped and the light stopped flashing. "Finally" he sighed. 

Just seconds later there was a loud clicking sound coming from one of the walls, startling him causing him to jump a little. A large rectangle of the wall disappeared, revealing a two tall silhouettes wearing all grey clothes. Rays of light seeped through the opening indicating that it was during the day. They seemed serious with malicious intentions. "564, come with us" the man on the right said as the two tall, intimidating men walked towards him with a sort of handcuff contraption. Woojin decided to comply as the men seemed strong but they also had an array of weapons around their waists, it would be impossible for him to even reach the door let alone the exit - wherever that was. 

Woojin cautiously stood up, not wanted to agitate his already aching body, and he held his hands out. Maybe if he complied with the two men they might not be as harsh with him. The two men exchanged a grin with each other as the one of left put Woojins hands in the contraption. It was a large square device with two holes (one for each hand), it was white with bright blue stripes running down each side. There was a small black square on top, it was about the size of a large finger tip, he assumed that's how they can remove it as it felt very secure around his hands. It was something that Woojin had never seen before - well to what he could remember anyway. 

Both of the men where communicating with each other in an unknown language, it seemed almost like a code since they just said numbers and letters yet they both understood and replied. They didn't direct any of this code to Woojin, probably since they were aware he didn't speak hence why they were speaking it now. Woojin thought of all the possibilities that they could be taking about, a lot of them included him, like; where he will go, what they are going to do to him or maybe they were even discussing his past. Either way Woojin felt very uneasy not knowing what was being said. 

 

//

Once the two men finished conversing the one on the right stood behind Woojin while the one of the left stayed in front. “Let’s go” the voice from behind said giving woojin a slight nudge - he was thankful that the man didn’t push him hard as his body still hurt all over. Woojin followed the man in front of him until he was in the door way of the room he was in. Woojin stopped, the sight before his eyes was more than he could process. The walls were tall with windows covering all of them, the room he was seemed to be placed in the Center of the room he was in now. This room was huge, stretching across the whole floor of the building. There were lots of other cube rooms like he was in scattered around the room, all equally small and gloomy. There were several other people in the room; some looked like the guards he had now, others looked like the doctor from the day before and some were like the in between of the two. 

Woojin felt another slight nudge from behind him signalling him to keep moving, woojin dragged his feet reluctantly across the floor continuing to follow the man in front. They walked until they reached a large metal lift, the man in front pressed the button causing a white light to flash above the door. After about ten seconds the lift arrived and all three men got in. 

 

//

No one had talked the whole journey except the odd order coming from one of the two men. Woojin felt the uncomfortable silence weigh down on his shoulders, he wanted to speak so badly - he had no idea when the last time he actually communicated to someone was, it could have been years or days, he had no way of knowing. Yet, in the end woojin decided to keep quiet as he didn’t want to get in either of the men’s bad side. 

The lift suddenly jolted to a stop making woojin jump out of his skin. The men around him were not fazed by the sudden stop at all, they didn’t even flinch (unlike woojin who almost grabbed the man in front of him for comfort). The doors opened to an average sized room, the walls were painted a dusty blue and the floor was grey. There was no windows but a large mirror stretched across a wall - Woojin felt as if this mirror served another purpose that he was not yet aware of. There was a cheap, grey plastic table with two matching chairs around; one on one side and the other on the opposite side. There was small circular light above the table shining a dim light onto to table. 

The man in front of him stepped out lift and the man behind gave Woojin another gentle nudge (confusing Woojin as he didn’t know why the man behind was so gentle). The two men stood in front of him, the one from behind was a little taller. The shorter man indicated for Woojin to sit on the chair nearest him as the taller man walked to the other side and sat down. 

“Do you think you can do this by yourself?” the shorter man snarled mockingly at the taller man. The taller, seated man just nodded and turned to face Woojin. Woojin felt extremely nervous, he could feel the sweat building on his forehead then slowly trickling down his face. He felt very uncomfortable and extremely intimidated by the man sat in front of him. The light was dim but it felt extremely harsh to Woojin’s eyes as he had a pounding headache from the pure fear in his heart.

“Woojin. Do you understand me?” the man spoke in a different language than he did before yet Woojin understood, it must have been a language that he spoke before he lost his memory. The man spoke softly, to try the calm the anxious boy down. The fact that the man referred to him as ‘Woojin’ instead of ‘564’ shocked him. But Woojin just nodded in response and the other man smiled, but not a malicious or creepy grin, it was a soft grin. This smile immediately caused Woojin to relax, it was comforting to see a smile after all he’s been through the past day. 

“I need you to listen very carefully okay?” the man said, he seemed very cautious, one could even say scared. “Don’t reply, just blink twice if you understand” he added, but the confused Woojin complied resulting in the man letting out a sigh of relief. 

“Please listen to and remember what I’m about to tell you. You need to show no sign of response. I can tell that you noticed that mirror over there...well it’s actually a window where you are being observed. They are looking for a reaction, so please don’t react.” He sounded very anxious as he spoke, his voice was almost shaky. 

“You’re going to be taken to Block 9. Once you arrive read this letter, this is all I can say right now. Please just do as I say” he man said as he stood up and placed a letter down Woojin’s shirt. “I’m sorry for this but...they can’t find it” he man said as he sat back down. 

The two sat in silence for a few minutes afterwards, both equally as nervous as the other, both fidgeting underneath the table. 

The door slammed open to reveal the smaller man from earlier, he looked furious. His eyes were burning with anger, his cheeks flushed with a deep red and his fists clenched so tight his knuckles went pure white. “YOU TRAITOR” he yelled, directed at the man sat across him. The smaller man pulled out his gun from his belt and shot the man in the gut, leaving him to slowly bleed out - a long and painful death - merciless. The smaller man stormed over to Woojin and aggressively grabbed his arm and yanked him out the door, pulling him into another room which looked the exact same as the previous.

 

//

The man left Woojin in the room for what felt like fifteen minutes, but he had no way to be sure. When he returned he was holding a large blue box, Woojin couldn’t see what was in box but he assumed that it had something to do with him since he was the only other person in the room. “Put these on” he ordered chucking a blue jumpsuit with the number ‘564’ in black sewn onto the left chest area. Woojin picked up the jumpsuit and stared at the man, he couldn’t easily change since he was still handcuffed, let alone that he didn’t want to change in front of him. The man walked over and took the handcuff contraption off and stood next to Woojin. “Just put it on!” He snapped. Woojin just continued to stare, the man eventually gave in and walked out the room. Woojin reluctantly took of his current clothes being careful to keep the letter out of the view of the ‘mirror’ and put the jumpsuit on, placing the letter in the same place it was before. The man quickly entered and put the contraption back on and Woojin was once again trapped.

“564, we’re moving you to Block 9, congratulations. You’ll be leaving immediately” he said in a monotone voice. Woojin remembered what the other man told him, making his curiosity grow even more, he was now desperate to read the letter that the man was willing to die for. The man walked over to Woojin dragging him out the door into the corridor that he was only in briefly before they took another exit and were outside. 

The sky was gloomy, dark clouds covered the blue sky and sun. Tall, industrial buildings surrounded the area. There was a small van on the road in front which the man shoved Woojin into, making a surge of pain shoot round his body. 

 

// 

Woojin was in the back of the van alone, it was dark, cold and the occasional bump would make Woojin bang his head on the side. Woojin was scared about what this ‘Block 9’ would be like. He wondered if there would be other people there like him or just the guards and scientists like before. The journey was excruciatingly long, Woojin even felt himself doze off several times but was quickly awoken by the terrible driving - Woojin was sure the driver was doing it on purpose. 

Woojin felt the van holt. There was a loud clang and the doors to the back of the van flung open. “Welcome to Block 9” the man snarled with a sinister smile and evil laugh.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m back as promised with a new chapter.
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

// 

Woojin slowly stepped out the van to see a large building complex covering for miles and miles. There was a large electric barbed fence around the area, covered in security cameras and alarms - the whole building seemed very secure meaning it would be impossible to escape. On the other side of the fence there was a desert like terrain with a long dusty dirt road (which he assumed he went down on the way there since it was covered in bumps - that he remembered waking him up). There were caves and dunes enclosing the road on either side. 

The world out there seemed dangerous - maybe these people were trying to help? Or maybe they were trying to make it impossible to survive if one could escape. Either way Woojin felt that he would soon find out. 

 

//

A group of several guards came out the building holding guns marching in unison. They all wore light blue trousers and coats with a thick bulletproof vest, the guns they were holding were large and the guards had taser sticks attached to belts on their waists. They all marched in unison in the direction of Woojin. He was terrified as the men kept marching towards him, getting closer and closer making Woojin more petrified by the second. He could feel his heart beating in his chest, it felt as if his heart was going to fly out his chest and land on the floor by his feet, his palms were sweaty and he couldn't move because he was paralysed with fear. 

Once the men got to where Woojin was stood they walked straight past, not even giving Woojin a glance, they just continued marching towards the gate. Woojin let a heavy breath that he was holding in, once they were all gone. Then the man who drove him there suddenly grabbed Woojin's arm and pulled him into one of the buildings. 

Woojin was taken into a small room. But it was significantly better lit (than the other rooms the man had taken him into previously) with several white lights lined up along the roof. The walls were a shade of light blue (the same colour as the guards uniform) and there was a large circular window to the right of the room, looking out onto the desert. 

There was a large chair in the centre of the room hooked up to a computer and it was covered in four thick leather restraints. There was a small desk with a computer (which the chair was attached to) and a worn black leather office chair. The man escorted Woojin to the chair. 

“Sit" he demanded while gesturing to the chair. Woojin reluctantly sat in the chair - even though he found it hard since his hands still weren't free. The man then reached over and removed the handcuff contraption and placed it on the desk near the computer, the man then strapped Woojin's hands into restraints on both sides of him, he then walked to the end of the chair and strapped his feet in too, making Woojin unable to move. The straps were made of thick brown leather and they irritated his skin making him feel very uncomfortable and highly agitated. 

Woojin felt anxious since there was definitely no way he could escape now, he was also especially anxious that the man might find the letter he received earlier. Woojin tried to move in his chair to become more comfortable but he was only met with more discomfort. 

"Don't move, it'll only get worse" the man said with a malicious laugh. The man then turned to the computer and began typing, hitting the keys furiously typing (in the same code that he spoke earlier). Woojin watched as the man finished typing and as he stared at the screen with a satisfied grin. 

The door slowly opened and two people entered the room; one was a women dressed in a clean, pure white suit. The woman looked reasonably old yet she gave off a sense of power and dominance, her eyes were cold and her expression was emotionless. 

The other woman was 'Walker' from the day before. Both the women stood in the doorway until the man signalled for them to come in - indicating it was safe for them since Woojin was fully restrained.

Woojin just remained still, staring at the people around him with a blank expression. 

"Hello, 564" the older woman said, her voice was soft yet stern, making her sound very professional. "I'm Dr Walker, the head of the all the Sectors. But I spend most my time here in Sector 9. And this is my daughter..Jane Walker." 

This news took a while for Woojin to process since he still didn't know what a 'Sector' even was, or why he needed to know these peoples names if they didn't use his and he still wondered why they called him '564'. He had so many questions which he knew he’d probably never get the answer to. 

The woman in a suit walked over to Woojin, "You see that scar" she said rolling up the leg of his jumpsuit "that means we own you ... I own you” she added looking Woojin directly in his eyes. Woojin felt his heart stop, the word 'own' it kept running through his mind, he wasn't a possession for someone to own...so how could they 'own' him. 

Woojin couldn't breathe. His breaths were uneven and he began to uncontrollably shake and he could feel the tears building in his eyes. All he wanted was to be let go and now he had no chance. There was no way these people would let one of their possessions go. Woojin had lost all hope of escaping and was beginning to realise his fate. 

The woman in the suit simply walked out the room with the other woman, leaving the now broken boy alone with the man he'd been with all day. Once they left and closed the door behind them, the man stood up and walked over to Woojin placing a small piece of cloth over his mouth and nose. 

This made Woojin feel extremely dizzy, his head started to pound and his vision was being infested with blurry dots, until eventually all he could see was black. Once again he was knocked out. 

 

//

Woojin opened his eyes to see he was in a small room, a little larger than the first room he woke up in. The walls were an off-white colour with no windows but two doors, one was a wooden white door and the other was a silver metal door. The floor was made of dark brown wooden planks nailed to the ground and there were two old, rusty, metal bunk beds with a worn mattress on all of the beds. 

Woojin slowly stood up, careful to not to loose his balance as he was still a little dizzy from the unknown substance on the cloth. He walked over to the white wooden door and placed his hand on the handle carefully pushing it open. 

Inside there was a small bathroom with a toilet, a sink and a small shower (Woojin would have to crouch a little to shower properly). The floor was black tiled and the walls were white and black checkered tiles. After a good look Woojin walked out the room and headed back to what seemed like the bedroom area. 

Woojin was feeling less dizzy so he was able to look around the room more thoroughly. Woojin walked over to the set of bunk beds nearest him and saw that the bottom bunk bed had a pillow whereas the top one didn't, the bed also had a chain necklace with a silver circular locket attached to the end. Woojin picked up the necklace, enchanted by the way it sparkled under the lights, then he opened up the circular locket to reveal a small picture of a young looking man holding a (very cute) baby. When taking a closer look Woojin realised that he recognised the man. Staring at the picture for a few seconds he remembered that it was the man from before - the guard that gave him the letter. Woojin almost dropped the necklace out of shock but luckily he didn't and instead he swiftly placed it back where he found it and headed over to the other set of bunk beds. 

This set of bunk beds also only had a pillow on the bottom bunk. On this bed there was a small toy figurine and a small note. Woojin decided to read the note, curious to see if it had any clues about where he was. 

 

____________

Dear binnie, 

I don't know if you'll get this but I hope you do. I trust that this letter will get to you... eventually.

I really miss you (and the others). I HATE THESE STUPID GUARDS. I HATE THE WHOLE SYSTEM! But i know for now there is nothing any of us can do. 

Chan says that he'll find a way for us all to be together but I think he's just trying to keep us all optimistic. I know you were never an optimist but please try and be for me because I need to believe we can find each other.

Please don't forget me as I'll never forget you. 

P.S Take this toy to remember me and our times together.

I wish to see you soon. 

Love,  
Lix xx

 

____________

 

The bottom of the letter had several tear stains making Woojin feel guilty about reading something so personal especially since it didn't belong to him. So he carefully placed the letter back where he found it (next to the toy) and walked over to the large metal door. 

Woojin knocked on the door several times with hope that someone would answer, but to no surprise there wasn’t an answer. He had no idea where he was and he was getting tired of being left alone feeling confused and scared.

Woojin let out a frustrated sigh and leaned his back against the cold metal of the door, he began to slowly slide down the door until he was sat on the floor. He placed his head into his hands and thought about all that had happened, trying to piece together all the information he had gathered; the gas, the guard, the letter, the doctor and the locket. But none of it made much sense. After a few moments Woojin closed his eyes and drifted off into the land of sleep. 

 

//

It was sunny, the sky was clear and the field (the same field from last time) was filled with a comfortable silence, with the occasional whisper or giggle. 

Lush green grass laced in between Woojin's small fingers, the sun warming the surface of his face. Laying there...relaxed, he felt safe...at home. 

"Come on woo" a little boy yelled, running towards Woojin with his arms open, he seemed a little younger than Woojin. “Let's go play" he whined squeezing the older. Woojin let out a slight laugh and allowed the boy to lead him.

 

//

Woojin's head bashed against the cold, hard concrete floor. "Ow!" He exclaimed rubbing the back of his head huffing. 

"Well maybe you shouldn't be sleeping against a DOOR" an unknown voice said. 

Woojin opened his eyes and saw a tall boy who looked a little younger than him. He had bright red hair covering his forehead in slight waves. His eyes looked tired, he was wearing black round glasses and he was wearing the same jumpsuit as Woojin. He looked annoyed and tired, like he'd been through hell and back. 

"Well I didn't think it would be opened anytime soon" Woojin said sounding a little annoyed. The other boy just scoffed and walked past Woojin - who was sprawled out across the floor of the doorway. 

While Woojin was attempting (and failing) to get up a tall guard came and picked Woojin up and shoved him back into the room, shutting the door behind them. While the other boy just walked into the room, unfazed by everything. 

//

"What's your name" Woojin flashed a friendly smile while walking over to the other boy - he was excited to talk to someone like him. Despite their first encounter, Woojin wanted to speak to the boy. 

"We don't have names" the boy said, walking over to one of the beds (the one with the locket) and sat down on the old mattress. 

"Oh..I'm sorry, I weren’t sure if it was just me.” Woojin felt a slight sense of guilt for asking. "Why is that...the reason you don't have names. I've just been referred to as a number" Woojin added looking at the boy in hope of an answer to one of his many questions he’s had on his mind since he first woke up. 

"We aren't people to them. They just see us as possessions...You'll just have to learn to deal with it" he sighed laying down on the bed. 

"Is that your bed?" Woojin asked pointing to the bed the boy was on. 

"Yeah" he spat. "That one is yours” he said pointing to the top bunk of the opposite bed. 

"Thank you" Woojin smiled as he walked over to the bed and climbed up the ladder. The ladder was rusty and creaked with each step he took. "By any chance do you know what time it is?" Woojin asked sleepily.

"It's curfew. And if you keep taking we'll get in trouble" he said turning in his bed to face away from Woojin. Woojin took this as sign that he should he stop asking questions and go to sleep. 

The bed was uncomfortable, he could feel the individual springs poking his back. He didn't even have a pillow like the other boy. It was cold as well , snce there were no blankets or heating. 

 

//

Woojin woke up with an extremely bad pain in his neck, from the way the slept. He looked over to see the other boy still sleeping. Woojin was planning on going back to sleep but his curiosity wouldn't let him. All he could think about were questions, questions to ask the boy, questions about where they are or who he was. But Woojin couldn't ask any since it was clear that the boy didn't want to talk to him. 

Woojin slowly sat up and carefully stepped down the ladder, his feet hitting the cold rusty metal sending chills over his body. Once he reached the floor he tiptoed his way over to the bathroom, trying not to wake the younger boy up - he didn't need another reason to hate Woojin. 

As Woojin walked past the boy he noticed something about him. His eyes were red and puffy, his face was blotchy, his pillow wet and shiny tear streaks ran down his cheeks - the boy had been crying in his sleep. Woojin wanted to wake the boy and comfort him but he decided against it as the boy was just a stranger who held a grudge against Woojin. 

Woojin finally reached the bathroom and sat on the floor. He took out the letter he’d been holding all day and began to read it. 

 

____________

Hello,

I know the circumstances of you receiving this letter probably aren't ideal. But you need to read this carefully and follow my instructions. 

By the time you read this I'll probably be dead or imprisoned and you will be in Sector 9. You'll probably be sat in the bathroom of your room reading this - as it's the only private place in the entire facility. And in this letter you'll find some information and instructions that I trust you with. 

•You'll need to find a boy with the number '719' and his name is 'seungmin'. 

•When the time and place is right tell him “the birds are preparing their nest” 

•Then just wait, I'll give you further instructions and details later.

 

_____________

 

That was all the letter said, which confused Woojin as it answered none of his questions and just left him with more. None of this situation made any sense to Woojin but he was planning on following the instructions given regardless. Woojin slipped the letter back into his jumpsuit and cautiously walked back into the bedroom. 

"What were you doing?" the boy asked tiredly, as he sat up on his bed with the necklace in his hand. 

"Just normal bathroom stuff" Woojin answered sounding nervous. The boy just scoffed and muttered something under his breath, that Woojin couldn’t hear. 

"So..you know you said how you don't have a name." The boy just hummed in understanding. "Well...what's your number? You know, like what can I call you" Woojin asked. 

"719. My number is 719, but you can call me S" he replied. Woojin felt his heart stop, '719' the number that was on the letter, and 'S' must stand for Seungmin. Woojin stared blankly at the other boy. 

"What's your number" the boy asked after a few awkward seconds. 

"654...but you can call me Woojin or ‘W’ if you want" he answered with a boxy smile. The other boy visibly tensed at the name Woojin told him. Both boys seemed to know more about each other than they let on.

"I was wondering if you could tell me about where we are...because I have no idea" Woojin asked since he was desperate to find out anything about where he was. 

"Fine" the boy moaned. "This is ‘Sector 9’ as you probably know. There are 10 sectors in total spread across the world. Each sector specialises in a certain field but we are never told what ours is. We have to attend school five days a week all day on and the other two we have 'skill time'. That's about all I can tell you" the boy said looking Woojin in the eye.  

"Wow, this is all so crazy." Woojin exclaimed, overwhelmed from all the information he had just been given. "What day is it today" woojin asked. 

"It's the first day of school, we have one hour to get ready." The boy added as he got up and walked to the bathroom which he entered and closed the door behind him, leaving Woojin alone once again. 

Woojin decided to look around the room again since he had nothing better to do. He climbed onto his bed and stared at the wall, he looked behind the pole next the wall and noticed something. There were nine letters engraved into the wall. 'S, H, M, J, C, F, J, C, W'. Woojin stared at these letters for several minutes trying to decipher what they meant.

 

//

“What are you doing” the other boy asked, disrupting Woojin from his thoughts. Woojin quickly sat up and mumbled in response. 

“Nothing...anyway...how come we’re called numbers” Woojin asked, trying to change the subject as quickly as possible. 

“No one really knows, all we know is that the numbers are random. I think it also makes everything less personal for the guards and doctors, to know a number but not a name. Also, I think it goes with the fact that the see us as possessions not people.” The boy replied walking over to Woojin. Woojin nodded in response to the answer he was given. 

Woojin seemed unusually quiet for the boy with a million questions and the other boy quickly picked up on it. 

“If you tell me what you were doing I’ll tell you...my real name” the boy said desperate to find out what Woojin was so desperate to hide. 

“I thought you didn’t have a name” Woojin replied sassily turning his head away from the boy. Woojin sighed, “fine”. 

“I was looking at the wall and there were these...engravings of letters. There were 9 of them but I have no idea what they mean.”Woojin said, tracing the letters with the top of his finger. “Your turn.” Woojin hastily added.

“Well...I’m seungmin but most people call me min.” the boy said flashing a genuine smile at Woojin. 

“That’s a nice name, Seungmin” Woojin said reciprocating the smile. 

A loud beeping sound echoed around the room. “Lessons start in ten minuets, all students go to your designated areas” the deep, monotone voice said. 

“Let’s go” Seungmin said gesturing Woojin to follow as he headed towards the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who left kudos or read this, I never really expected anyone to read it.
> 
> Anyway, how did you find this chapter? 
> 
> I’ll try to upload the next chapter the same time next week.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is shorter than usual as I didn’t have enough time this week ~ sorry. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy this chapter. 
> 
> Feel free to leave comments.

//

The two boys walked out the large metal door into a long corridor. The corridor was cold and felt desolate even though it was filled with other ‘students’ heading to their designated areas for their first class of the day. 

“You’re in the same classes as me..so follow me” Seungmin said leading Woojin down the corridor. The corridor felt unnerving with spider webs in every crevasse and corner. Woojin hated spiders with a passion, he didn’t understand why since it was probably something to do with a memory from his past. But the sight of the webs sent shivers all round his body. 

“Wh-Where are we going?” Woojin stuttered speeding up to a slight jog to catch up to the other boy. 

“We have politics first, where we have to learn about how great Dr Walker is” Seungmin snarled. “Come on, we can’t be late” Seungmin exclaimed as he turned the corner and exited through a large grey door with ‘P2’ in gold letters on the front. 

Seungmin opened the door and gestured at Woojin to enter with him. The two boys walked into the mysterious classroom. 

“Changbin!” Seungmin said as he ran over to a shorter boy who looked miserable and angry. The boy was handsome but he seemed extremely exhausted, more than either Woojin or Seungmin. 

“Are you coming back tonight?” Seungmin asked the boy trying not to sound too hopeful. 

“I don’t know, they told me that I had to attend class and that they’d decide while I’m here.” The boy mumbled, he seemed dazed like he’d been through a traumatic experience and was unable to remove the images from his mind. 

“Okay” Seungmin said with a slight smile. “Oh yeah, I almost forgot...this is Woojin and...he’s our new roommate.” Seungmin said rushing the last part almost to the point where Woojin could barely understand. 

“Hel-“

“What the hell! We don’t a need a new roommate because they’re coming back. Where will he go?!” Changbin sounded furious. He hated Woojin more than Seungmin did. 

Woojin felt very uncomfortable with the boys outburst, so he walked over to a small wooden desk at the back of the room and sat down. Leaving the two boys arguing in the corner of the room. 

The classroom had grey and blue walls - everything here seemed to be associated with blue. And there were desks lined up in rows. There was about 25 desks in total and one at the front of the room for the ‘teacher’. 

Eventually Seungmin came and sat next to Woojin and Changbin sat next to him. After a few more minuets the classroom was full of people around Woojins age, give or take a few years. 

“I know now isn’t the best time but... I was wondering. What’s the difference between a sector and a block” Woojin asked as he was told he was in both sector and block 9.

“Well as you know there are 10 sectors around the world. But I’m each sector there are blocks, the number of blocks depends on the sector you’re in. We have 14 blocks in sector 9.” Seungmin answered. 

Woojin was about to thank Seungmin for telling him the answer to one of his many burning questions but, a tall guard walked in, who Woojin assumed was the ‘teacher’. The man had a strong presence making Woojin feel very small intimidated.

“Everybody, get your tablets out” the mans voice filled the room. Like clockwork everybody placed a black rectangular tablet on the desk they were sat at. The screens lit up the room, illuminating the faces of the other people, highlighting all their features. 

Woojin realised he didn’t have a tablet so he looked under his desk but nothing was their. Woojin put his hand up to signal that he needed help. 

“Yes” the man spat. 

“I-I don’t have a ta-tablet” woojin stuttered, the mans glare burnt into Woojin’s soul, making him extremely terrified. 

“Who are you?” He said while reaching for his own tablet and began typing. 

“Woo- 564. I’m 564, sir” Woojin said. 

“Oh I see, you’re new to the sector.” He said reaching into a draw, “this is yours now” the man said placing a tablet identical to the others onto the desk.

Woojin picked up the device and inspected it, turning it and looking at every button. He clicked the larger of the three button and the screen lit up. It displayed a time and date ‘26 September 2198’. 

Woojin was still puzzled by the device but he copied what the other students did and eventually got to a file labelled ‘politics’. 

Woojin looked at the most recent file labelled with the date that was on the screen a few seconds ago. He opened it and none of it made sense, Woojin knew how to read it, he understood every word but it still seemed like a foreign language. The letters scrambled around Woojins head, he was beginning to feel flustered as he seemed to be the only one who didn’t know what to do. He tried to read the document on the screen, eventually he stumbled upon some questions at the bottom. 

He stared at the questions blankly with no idea even how to start to answer them. 

“Hey, Woojin...” a soft voice whispered, Woojin looked up to see Seungmin looking at him. 

“Do you need help?” He asked sounding sincere. Woojin was very grateful for the offer so he nodded and smiled in response, not wanting to draw any unwanted attention. 

“I’ll explain it all to you later. But the answers are: A,A,C,A,D,E,B,C,D,B and the last one is 2067” Seungmin whispered with a slight smile. 

‘Thank you’ Woojin mouthed as he began to type the answers in. 

“Once you answer the questions, continue reading” the man at the front said, making Woojin let out a quiet frustrated sigh, since he didn’t understand any of it. 

Woojin felt as if the rest of the lesson lasted an eternity, he just sat there trying to understand what the document on the screen said, by the end he felt just as clueless and confused as before, if not more. 

A loud bell went off and everybody picked up their tablets and walked out the room, Woojin followed and walked out the door into the large corridor seungmin led him through earlier. 

As Woojin walked down the corridor following the crowd he could hear two familiar voices whispering behind him. 

“Woojin...it’s time to eat now. Do you want to eat with us?” Seungmin asked, standing next to Woojin and dragging a reluctant Changbin behind him. 

“Oh..yeah. Th-thanks” Woojin smiled, it was comforting to have someone looking out for him. He didn’t know why but he felt as if he could trust Seungmin. 

Seungmin grabbing Woojin’s arm and pulled him and Changbin into a large hall filled with people of all ages and conversations filled the air. There were lots of plastic tables in the room, some were circular and some were rectangular surrounded with plastic chairs and benches. 

Seungmin was headed towards a table with a boy sat by himself, he seemed younger than Seungmin, he had raven black hair in loose curls, he was very cute and gave off a sense of innocence and purity. The boy was looking off into the distance seeming lost in thought. 

Seungmin and Changbin sat down across from the young boy (who didn’t seem to even notice any of them). 

“Hi Innie” Seungmin said reaching his hand across the table to ruffle the youngers hair, causing the boy to let out a shy giggle. The boy was about to speak but quickly stopped himself when his eyes met Woojins. 

“This is Woojin. He’s my...friend” Seungmin said, pointing at Woojin. 

“I wouldn’t call him a ‘friend’” Changbin scoffed, making Seungmin give Changbin an intense glare and kick under the table. The younger boys eyes grew big with concern at Changbins words and his body visibly tensed. 

“Fine” he sighed. “He’s a friend” Changbin moaned. Woojin felt a smile creep onto his face at the moody boys words. Changbin rolled his eyes and Seungmin laughed. 

Woojin walked over and sat next to the young boy. “H-hello” Woojin stuttered, he always felt nervous meeting new people no matter what the circumstances are. Woojin’s stutter caused the youngest boy a show a cute smile. 

“So what’s happening?” Woojin asked. 

“Well a guard will come with our food soon.” Changbin replied - to Woojin’s surprise. “And if you were on about him...his name is Jeongin and he doesn’t talk must since-“ he cut himself off at the end almost as if he was about to say something he shouldn’t. 

“Oh, okay.” Woojin replied. “But I don’t mind him” he added flashing a friendly smile to all the boys. 

After few seconds a couple of guards came and placed four trays of food on the table. The guards wore a darker blue uniform and they didn’t say anything, once they placed the trays they walked off and did the same at the next table. 

Woojin looked at the tray in front of him and was greeted by a thick beige porridge like substance. It had dark specks scattered about, appearing to have a crunchy texture. Woojin picked up the spoon and shovelled some into his mouth. He automatically gagged, it tasted plain yet revolting, just the thought of eating more made him feel sick. 

The boys around him were laughing hysterically. “You get used to it” Seungmin smiled. 

“It’s fine, I’m not hungry anyway” Woojin smiled while carefully moving the tray with the disgusting substance away. The other boys just began to scoff the weird substance down, immune to its inedible taste and texture. 

Woojin watched as they ate, everybody in the hall was eating. This whole facility gave Woojin the creeps, everything seemed so robotic and the people appeared brainwashed - all expect the boys he was eating with. The boys did the same things as the other students but it didn’t seem as natural and they didn’t seem so empty. 

A soft hand tapped Woojin’s leg under the table making him flinch. Woojin casually looked under the table to see that Jeongin was passing him a small packet. Woojin took it and mouthed ‘thank you’ to the boy. He lifted it above the table and saw he was holding a red packet, which he cautiously opened. In the packet was an array of nuts, raisins and oats. Woojin quickly ate the bar and let out a satisfied grin - it tasted so good, like an explosion of flavour and textures. 

After a few more minutes all the boys had finished eating and were seeming desperate to speak, yet no one had the courage to break the silence. Until....

“Where’s Minho?” Seungmin asked the other two boys at the table (the question clearly weren’t for Woojin as he only knew the boys at the table). 

“Where do you think” Changbin scoffed. “He’s desperate. I don’t know why he keeps researching... he’s never going to find anything. He should just give up like the rest of us.” Changbin sounded defeated. The other two boys just looked down and the table with a frown creeping on their faces 

Clearly something... something big happened before Woojin arrived but he decided that it would be best not to pry as he only met the boys recently and he knew nothing about them. After all, they were reluctant to share something as simple as their names let alone something as big as this. 

The bell rang again and Woojin was once again led to class by Seungmin. 

The rest of the day was a blur, he wasn’t sure what happened or how long it had been. But Woojin knew he was already tired, all of this was overwhelming and really drained him. All the classes of things he didn’t understand was finally hitting him. 

“Hello...”

“Helloooooo” 

“Earth to Woojin” 

Woojin snapped out of his daze to see Seungmin frantically waving his hands in front of Woojin’s face. 

“Finally...I’ve been trying to get your attention for like five minutes. We have some time to kill before we have to go back to our dorm” Seungmin stated, he seemed eager, almost excited to tell him the next part. 

“Come on... I have one more person I need you to meet.” Seungmin said as he pulled Woojin out the classroom and into what seemed like a library. 

The walls were stacked will old books which looked untouched, thick layers of dust coated each cover. Making a once colourful explosion become a dull grey sheet. There were lots of small desks in rows with small gaps in between each one. Computers also laced the walls of the room, the screens all turned off, also seeming like they’d been untouched for quite a while.

A boy holding multiple books walked straight into Woojin, resulting in all the books to scatter across the floor forming a cloud of dust that rose from the fallen books. The boy quickly bent down and began to gather his books, muttering incoherently under his breath. 

“I-I’m sorry” Woojin said as he crouched down to assist the flustered boy. As Seungmin just stood there watching the events unfold. 

Eventually all the books were gathered up and the boy was about to carry on waking. “Minho” Seungmins voice rang in Woojin’s ears, it sounded serious and stern.

“That’s no way to treat a new friend.” He tutted. “This is Woojin, be nice” Seungmin added, placing his arm on Woojin’s shoulder. 

“Nice to meet you but I’m kind of in a hurry. See you around” and with that the boy scurried off. Woojin barely got to look at the boy, the whole meeting went by in a flash. 

“Why was he in a hurry?” Woojin asked as the two boys were heading back to their dorm - they decided it would be best as they were both tired and had a lot to talk about. 

“Well... it’s hard to explain. But... something happened and now he’s trying to fix it” Seungmin said. 

“But it’s hopeless, he’s just wasting his time” he added with a sigh. 

Clearly what happened was very important and Woojin was now desperate to find out.


	4. Authors note

I’m really sorry but I’m unable to post a new chapter this week as I’ve had no time to write with all the school work I’ve got recently as well as family things. 

I just really needed a short break to take a rest but I will try my best to make sure that next week the chapter is extra good - and on time. 

Once again I’m really sorry and I’ll try my best to do better next time.


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter.
> 
> Sorry I didn’t update last week but I think I might post a new chapter every fortnight (2 weeks - every other week) so I’ll have more time to write each chapter and make them good. Recently I’ve felt the chapters haven’t been of good quality so I’m going to try and do better.

//

The rest of the walk was in silence, questions burning in Woojin’s soul but he knew that now probably wasn’t the best time to ask. 

“I know you’re probably dying of curiosity so thanks..for not prying. I promise that I’ll tell you in time” Seungmin said. These words brought comfort to Woojin, to know that he’d be accepted at one point was enough to keep him going, to keep pushing forwards and to not give up. 

When they reached the dorm Woojin opened the door and let Seungmin enter first. 

“CHANGBIN!” Seungmin yelled, Woojin looked in the room to see Seungmin running towards the shorter boy with his arms flung open and wrapping themselves around him. Seungmin looked ecstatic, he seemed happier than he did earlier. 

“I can’t believe that they let you come back ahh-“ Seungmin was squeezing the boy almost until he couldn’t breathe. Woojin was confused about this whole situation - what could Changbin have done to not be allowed the stay? But Woojin felt he wouldn’t get the answer for that tonight. 

“Yeah I can’t believe it either.” Changbin said, he seemed happier than before but no where near as joyous at Seungmin was. 

The reunion made Woojin feel awkward since it made him realise how he wasn’t that close with either of the boys - or anyone for that matter. Woojin felt a surge of loneliness hit him, watching the bond that all the boys had with each other...it hurt Woojin to know that he may never have that. Woojin slowly walked over to his bunk bed and climbed up the ladder and onto his bed (without attracting the attention of either of the boys in the room).

“You okay?” a raspy voice asked - it was changbin. Why was he concerned? Woojin thought that he hated him. Woojin sat up and saw that Seungmin had left (Woojin had no idea where he went but he wasn’t too worried) leaving him alone with Changbin. 

“You know you can trust us” Changbin said, he sounded sincere, his voice was much softer than he’d heard before.

“B-But you d-don’t trust m-me” it was true, it wasn’t as if Woojin was lying or exaggerating the situation - they showed no signs of trust towards him. Woojin felt as if he was on the verge of tears. He was internally cursing himself for being so emotionally vulnerable in front of someone - especially Changbin of all people. Woojin looked down in embarrassment, fiddling with the hands, doing anything to avoid eye contact with the other boy in the room.

Woojin felt a warm hand land on his shoulder. “It’s okay, you’ve been through a lot. Sometimes you just need to cry” and with that Woojin broke down, he began to let out pained sobs. He was so scared, he’d been through so much and he had no memory of who he was. Of course he was emotional. Woojin thought of all the possible things that he could’ve forgotten; his parents names and faces, maybe he had a sibling he forget, he could’ve had a pet, he couldn’t remember his friends - whoever and wherever they were, he might have even been in a relationship. He didn’t know anything, he was a stranger to himself. Woojin continued to sob for minuets after and changbin was there comforting him, remaining silent and not judging a single thing. Woojin was still surprised at how caring the boy was ‘mr dark’ seemed completely different. 

“T-thank y-you” Woojin mumbled in between his deep breaths - he had finally stopped crying but his breathing was still uneven and shaky. Changbin just rubbed his warm hand across Woojins back comforting him. 

“I know that I wasn’t the nicest to you but...maybe we can be friends.” Changbin sounded vulnerable when making the offer, it was almost cute.

“Yeah that would be nice” Woojin replied with a smile. He was surprised that he didn’t stutter since he’d been stuttering the whole time he was here. Woojin climbed down from his bed and gave Changbin a friendly hug. 

A loud cough was heard and both boys turned to the doorway to see Seungmin standing there with a giant smug grin across his face. Changbin and Woojin disbursed and blushed, both boys tried to seem so strong when in reality they were both broken and in need of friendship. 

“I was gone for like ten minutes... what happened here?” Seungmin asked still looking like a smug little puppy. He seemed happy that the two boys were finally getting along - especially since they all had to share a room. Woojin and Changbin just stared at Seungmin. 

“We were just discussing some things” Changbin replied, “you know...sorting things out.” Woojin felt his cheeks get redder, Changbin could expose Woojin any second, he could tell Seungmin about his emotional breakdown. 

Seungmin let out a short chuckle. “Don’t you want to know what I was doing” he said smiling. Seungmin held his arms out to show that he was holding a small pillow. “I was getting this, I thought you could use this.” Seungmin carefully placed the pillow in Woojin’s hands.

“Thank you” Woojin said. He felt really touched that Seungmin went out of his way to make Woojin more comfortable. It was nice to feel as if he had someone who was looking out for him. Woojin suddenly remembered the letter that was given to him on his first day, ‘When the time and place is right tell him “the birds are preparing their nest” ‘.  
When would the time be right? Was the message urgent? What did it even mean? He thought that there was no way of knowing without asking but he couldn’t ask now. This was because Changbin was in the room and the letter never mentioned him, so even if Woojin trusted him, it was too risky. 

“It’s been a long day, why don’t we go to bed” Changbin suggested smiling at the two boys. 

“Yeah that’s a good idea” Seungmin added as he walked over to his bed. 

After a few minuets all three boys finished getting ready for bed and were beginning to settle down. Woojin climbed up the rusty ladder and flopped onto the bed - he was exhausted. He looked up at the ceiling and went into a state of deep thought. He thought about how even though he had no idea who we was, he was still able to let those around him in. He was able to feel vulnerable yet safe around the boys he’d not known for long. 

As he was thinking his mind slowly went blank and he fell asleep. 

 

//

The sky was dark and a bright crescent moon illuminated the small room. The room seemed as if it was part of a small hut, the roof was thatched and the walls were made of wood and straw. It was cold but there was a small fire burning in the centre of the room. 

A tall figure was stood facing away from Woojin, he had a light grey curly hair and was wearing all baggy black clothes. Woojin couldn’t recognise the boy - although he couldn’t see his face - he still felt close to the boy, as if they’d been friends for a long time. The mysterious boy turned around and looked at Woojin, he let out a soft chuckle and a small smile. He was ethereal, his smile made Woojin’s heart flutter, he felt as if he was about to melt on the spot. 

“Are you okay?” He boy asked, he voice was calming and soothing. Woojin loved the way his voice bounced around the small room, ringing in his ears. Woojin couldn’t think of anything to say, he was left speechless by the presence of the boy. Woojin looked down at the floor trying to hide his blushing cheeks. Long arms wrapped themselves around Woojin’s waist. 

“Don’t worry, I will always be here for you. I will always find you” 

 

//

Woojin woke up with a jolt, he felt as his heart ached. He longed for the warm embrace he dreamed about. He wanted to see that boy again, he wanted to hear his voice. Woojin wanted to know more about the beautiful human being. Woojin sat up and looked around the room and noticed that seungmin was awake, he seemed as if he’d been crying. Woojin looked at the boy who always seemed so happy but in this moment he seemed broken. Consequently, he decided to leave his bed and he silently tiptoed toward Seungmin’s bed.

Woojin softly placed his hand on Seungmins shoulder, making his body visibly tense. “Are you okay?” Woojin whispered. Woojin could tell that Seungmin wanted to talk but also didn’t, he seemed conflicted and this made Woojin want to comfort him even more. Seungmin mumbled something which Woojin didn’t understand, he then quietly cleared his thought and repeated what he said. “Let’s not wake Changbin. We can go in the bathroom” Seungmins breathes seemed shaky as if something was really troubling him. Woojin nodded and guided the boy into the bathroom and aided him as he sat down. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Woojin asked sincerely, he was worried about Seungmin and he wanted to know what was troubling him. 

“Sure...well...it’s just...I miss him, I miss all of them-“ Seungmin cut his self off, like Changbin had done before. It was starting to become clear that the boys were part of some group and that they got separated before Woojin came. But whenever either of them began to talk about it, they seemed to stop as if they shouldn’t have said anything in the first place. 

“Why do you do that?” Woojin asked sounding a little frustrated. 

“W-what?” Seungmins voice was shaky as if he was holding back more tears. 

“You’re always about to tell me something about yourself then you just...stop. Why don’t you trust me?” Woojin sounded both frustrated and hurt, he clearly trusted them more than they trusted him. 

“It’s just...complicated. You wouldn’t understand.” Seungmin said quietly. 

“I don’t seem to understand any of this. I don’t why I’m here or what’s going on but...I thought that we could trust each other.” Woojin now sounded as if he was holding back tears. 

“It’s not like that.” Seungmin didn’t like to see Woojin hurt, even if he didn’t want to tell him, it was seeming like that was the only option. 

“Fine I’ll tell you...Before you came we were part of a group, there were 8 of us in total. We were all from different regions but we quickly became friends. Then long story short we eventually got separated and that’s what Minho is searching for..answers, ways to find them and get them back. But we’ve all lost hope.” Seungmin was beginning to tear up, it clearly hurt him that he wasn’t able to be his friends and woojin could infer that he was extra close with one of them as he said he specifically missed ‘him’. 

Woojin crawled over to the boy and gave him a hug. “I’m glad you told me because...I’ll help you” Seungmin eyes lit up, although they stopped trying they were all still wanted and dreamed that they’d see their friends again. “And since we’re being honest. I have something to tell you, I don’t know what it means but a guard told me to tell a boy with the same number as you a specific message on my first day. It was this ‘the birds are preparing their nest’.” Seungmins face suddenly grew a pale white, he seemed as if he was about to throw up. 

“W-What?” Seungmin collapsed, falling onto the floor (granted it wasn’t far as he was sat down). 

“I-I don’t kn-know what it m-means. I’m s-sorry” Woojin began to panic as he saw the distress this message caused his friend. 

“It’s not your fault. You’re just passing on a message.” Seungmin slowly stumbled to his feet, leaning against the sink. 

“What does it m-mean?” Woojin asked. 

“It means that he’s coming back...they all are coming back.” 

These words confused Woojin as Seungmin appeared so upset by the information, yet a few minutes ago he was telling Woojin how he missed this. Obviously the message meant something else but Woojin had interrogated Seungmin enough for one night. 

//

A loud crash came from outside the door, Woojin jumped up and hastily opened the door to see Changbin lying on the ground unconscious. Woojin and Seungmin looked at each other and quickly went to the other boys aid. They carefully picked him up and carried him to his bed where they cautiously lowered him down. 

“I’m going to bed” Seungmin announced and next thing Woojin knew was that the other two were both fast asleep, leaving him confused and tired.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m really sorry about the less frequent updates. But I hope you still continue to read this.


	6. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is shorter than usual.
> 
> Also, all these chapters aren’t fully edited so please point out any mistakes you find.

//

Why did everything have to be so complicated? All Woojin wanted was to go home -wherever that might be. He wanted to remember his old life and go back to it. He hated the situations that this place put him in. How was he supposed to handle this situation, the unconscious Changbin and upset, hostile Seungmin. He barley knew the boys yet now he feels responsible for them, as if he should care for them right now in their time of need. Woojin decided to take a few minuets to think of all his options 

1\. Pretend that nothing happened and try to resume his new life  
2\. Wake both them up and make them talk  
3\. Wake just Seungmin up and get him to talk and help with Changbin  
4\. Wait for them to be ready to talk to him - whenever that may be  
5\. Go to sleep and see how things unfold

Woojin decided to go for option 5 as it was still early in the morning and neither of the other boys were in any state to talk to him and he was exhausted. 

 

//

Woojin was running, he felt adrenaline take control over his body. He legs felt numb, he felt he’d been running for days - he was exhausted. But for some unknown reason he felt as if he couldn’t stop, as of his life depended on it. Woojin could hear the sound of footsteps running closer with every second. A body smashed itself into him, resulting in the two bodies to tumble to the floor in a tangled mess - their bodies intertwined in every way possible. 

Woojin’s body ached, the fall to the floor send a jolt of pain round his whole body. However, the other body was letting out playful laughs, almost hysterical. Woojin opened his eyes, which he didn’t realised he closed upon impact. The ethereal being was on top of him, smiling and laughing - he looked angelic. Woojin was awe-struck unable to piece together the scene in front of him. 

“I told you I’ll always find you.” He smiled, placing a soft kiss onto Woojin’s forehead causing him to blush. “Now come on, we need to keep practising.” The boy said as he got up, sticking his arm out to help Woojin up. 

 

//

Woojin woke up abruptly as always, the fragments of his memories threatening to slip away. Woojin always had to try hard to not forget the face he saw, the time he spent with him, the emotions and feelings he felt... He couldn’t let them slip away, it was almost like his memory was teasing him, drip feeding him memories leaving him desperate to know more. 

Woojin looked around and noticed that he woke up first, so he quietly got up out of bed and inspected the scene in front of him. Both the other two boys seemed as if they cried during the night - this was becoming a common occurrence. Woojin always wondered what caused this, could it be that they had small memories teasing them too or could it be friends that were taken away from them. Either way Woojin felt as if he should care for them, comfort them - although they might not seem as they wanted it. 

Woojin continued to the bathroom. Once he arrived he looked in the mirror to see the state that he was in. Deep, dark bags stretched from under his eyes to the top of his cheeks, he seemed as if hadn’t had a good night sleep for days - which was true. His hair was scruffy and greasy since he hadn’t properly washed it since as he long as he could remember. His clothes were beginning to smell since they hadn’t been washed since he first got them either. Overall, he wasn’t in a good state, mentally or physically. He sighed and walked back into the bedroom to see that Seungmin and Changbin were both awake and sitting on the floor facing him. 

“We need to talk” Seungmin exclaimed, his voice was cold and stern. It sent chills down Woojin’s spin. 

“But not now...We have school.” Changbins voice was shaky and broken, which was unnerving for Woojin since he always seemed so strong - but even the strongest of people can break. 

 

//

It was only the second day of classes but Woojin already felt like he’d been sat at the school for an eternity. He was still far behind, despite being one of the eldest there. He was confused by the logic and articles he had to read - none of it made any sense to him. 

The lesson dragged until it was finally time to eat. He’d been waiting a while for this, he was hungry and wanted some time to talk to everyone who he’d met since he arrived. 

 

//

When Woojin got to the table everyone was already sat down and whispering among themselves. On one side of the table Seungmin, Changbin and Jeongin sat, opposite Minho was sat down - to Woojins surprise, since he was usually busy in the library. Woojin sat down next to Minho and looked up with expectant eyes - the table fell silent the moment Woojin arrived. 

“Minho agreed to help tutor you.. since you are still struggling in class” Seungmin said softly, while Minho just grunted in response. 

“Th-thank you, it’s all still r-really confusing but I th-think with the right help I-I might understand.” Woojin smiled while he stuttered, still grateful none of the boys laughed at his stuttering. Woojin had no idea if this was a new trait or one he always had - either way it was beginning to get on his nerves and it constantly embarrassed him. 

Minho mumbled something incoherently and nothing more was said for a while. The table was awkward, Woojin could sense the tension, it was almost hitting him the face it was that blatantly obvious that Minho didn’t want to help him - clearly he was forced by Seungmin. 

Eventually the food came, it was the same slop as yesterday but this time Woojin forced it down (he gathered that he would have to be able to eat it as they were fed it three times a day). 

“Is this really all we’ll get fed” Woojin frowned. He tried to stay optimistic but living here made that quite impossible. 

“On our hobby days the food is... different.” Jeongin quietly answered this time - to everyone’s surprise. He flashed a shy smile in Woojin’s direction and the other boys just stared completely dumbfounded by Jeongins words.

“Well I never” Changbin exclaimed. “You have no idea how hard it is to get him to speak” Changbin let out a soft chuckle, as if he was truly amazed by the event that just took place. 

“Time to go back to lessons” a guards voice boomed making all the boys jump - especially Jeongin. 

 

//

The rest of the day went as a blur, he didn’t really talk to anyone since they only ate together at the morning meal and you weren’t supposed to talk in class. Woojin didn’t seem to run into any trouble with his teachers, expect one who kept picking on him for answers he clearly didn’t have. The teacher even hit him, leaving a red mark on Woojins cheek - but no one in the class reacted to this, as if it was normal for the guards to hurt them. 

“You have your study session with Minho now, he’ll be in library” Seungmin told Woojin as he walked off. 

“Wait” Woojin shouted a little too loud as it caught the attention of several other students. “Will you talk to me about it” Woojin whispered, cautious of the people around him. 

“Later” Seungmin said as he disappeared into the crowd of people.

Woojin was starting to get impatient with their little games. He wanted them to talk to him..to trust him. He believed he earned it. But for now he had a study session that he was probably already late for. 

 

//

Minho was sat at a small table, his face buried deeply into a book. He was the only one, everyone else was on their tablets. Books didn’t seem to have much use anymore as everything you would ever need to know could be found on the tablets. 

“H-hello” Woojin sat down opposite Minho. 

“I don’t want to be here anymore than you so let’s get this over with.” Minho huffed. Although woojin didn’t mind being here, he did want to improve at his ‘school’ work and he wanted to know more and the mysterious Minho. 

“A-actually I don’t m-mind” Woojin stated, sounding every innocent and offended by Minhos initial impression of him. Minho did seem a little taken back by this statement.

The boys began to study, to Woojin’s surprise Minho was very helpful and explained everything clearly, so clearly that Woojin actually began to understand. And after about an hour Woojin felt as if he could walk into class tomorrow and be able to work and not be confused. 

“T-thank you” Woojin smiled. “You’ve r-really helped m-me”. 

“It’s fine I-“ Minho was cut off by a huge crowd gathering at the door of the library. 

“What’s going on?” Minho asked, it seemed too chaotic for the library, something was clearly happening. 

“Jisung is back” a random girl replied as she ran past towards the crowd. 

Minho jumped up from his chair, causing it fall to the ground and he ran towards the crowd forming. Woojin quickly followed, confused by Minhos sudden change in personality. Minho pushed his way through the crowd till he made his way to the front. 

Minhos face visibly paled, “w-what” he whispered as he slowly backed out the crowd. Woojin was quite tall so he could look over peoples head if he stood on his tiptoes so he was able to see Minho. ‘Jisung’ was a tall boy with blonde hair but he appeared young (younger that Jeongin) so it would have surprised him if Minho knew him. Woojin followed Minho out the crowd, Minho ran past him and into one of the isles of bookshelves.

After a few seconds Woojin managed to find Minho scrunched up in a ball, his head buried in his knees. He was shaking vigorously and letting out long, pained, uneven sobs. Woojin immediately jumped to comfort the boy, placing his arm around him and slowly stroking his back. He didn’t say anything for a while, he wanted to tell Minho to cry for a while because he understood that sometimes it helps to cry. 

“What’s wrong?” Woojin asked his voice was soft and kind. Minho just continued to cry. “It’s okay” Woojin whispered as he continued to stroke his back. 

“I thought it was him-“ Minho cried. “I really believed it was him”. 

“Who?” Woojin asked trying to sound as calm as possible. 

“Jisung..Han Jisung.” Minho let out another pained sob as if the name hurt him to say. Woojin didn’t know why he bothered asking who, it’s not like he knew anyone. But it seemed to eventually calm Minho down - to know that Woojin was there to listen and comfort him. 

“Can I trust you?” Minho asked quietly. Woojin nodded and gave a reassuring smile to Minho. 

“Can I tell you about him?” Minho asked, trying to hold back the tears.  
Woojin nodded again and gave a reassuring, friendly smile. 

“The last time I saw him..he was so sweet and funny and a little stupid but I..I love him” Minho seemed broken, sharing his last memory of someone who was clearly extremely special and important to him. “He always told me I was too stern, I needed to loosen up a little... he was giving me one of his ‘lessons’. He always did pride himself on his cuteness.” Minho let out a soft laugh, as if remembering the event as it happened. “He was going to teach me how to be cute... but I could never be as cute as him.” He laughed again, smiling at the story. “He sat down on one of the sofas in a common room. We sat facing each other. He leant in, so close I could feel his warm breath as he let out soft giggles. He looked so cute, my little squirrel.” Minho even blushed at the thought. “We talked for hours, those were the best hours of my life. But the next day...he was taken away from me.” Minho looked down at the floor. “I’ve been trying to find him ever since” he sounded so broken, vulnerable and devastated. “I miss him”. 

“Minho I’m so sorry. I can’t imagine what that must be like” woojin said (he was glad that his stutter seemed to disappear at this moment). 

Minho slowly stood up with the help of Woojin and looked him in the eyes with utter despair. “Please don’t tell the others about this” he pleaded, Woojin nodded and the two boys parted ways - the crowd had dispersed since they were talking for quite a long time. 

 

//

When Woojin got back to his room Changbin and Seungmin were both waiting expectantly, they both seemed serious and troubled. Woojin looked at them, surprised when they indicated to go in the bathroom. 

“We need to talk” Seungmin broke the silence. “...about last night.”

“I’m sorry..I passed out because I overheard your conversation and I was just so...shocked” Changbin interrupted. Woojin remained silent because he was lost for words, he didn’t know if he should be sympathetic or angry at them for not telling him anything. But, he also understood that he was a stranger to them. 

“It’s just..it’s been a while since we heard anything about them...our friends. We should have told you but it’s...complicated.” Seungmins voice was quiet and soft. He did sound honest and sincere. “We wish we could explain.” Seungmin added, eyes tearing up.

“Please do explain.” Woojin declared, his voice was cold yet soft he sounded desperate and angry, all he wanted was answers and he couldn’t wait any longer. 

“Okay...where should I start?” Seungmin said, holding the arm of a distraught Changbin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did you like it? 
> 
> Don’t forget new chapters every other week.

**Author's Note:**

> I’m still writing this story as I post this, I just wanted to see how it did. I’m planning on this being quite a long story, with multiple chapters about this.


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